Life Without a Car: Finding a Cheap Rental Car
(picture courtesy of Mia Mabanta)
Unlike finding an apartment for rent on MyNewPlace, renting a car is a logic defying process of truly stultifying proportions. What capricious madman makes up these rates, why do they change so much and why can't you return a car on a Sunday night?
For example, in San Francisco, if you are renting a car for the weekend, it is actually cheaper to take a cab (which is $40) down to San Francisco International Airport and rent a car there rather than rent a car from within city limits. You can save even more money if you take the BART (the San Francisco Bay Area's subway) down to the airport, which costs $6.
Although this is a wicked inconvenience, with all things considered it is still far superior to actually owning your own car in the city. Part of the appeal of moving into an apartment downtown or close to public transportation is that you can get around pretty easily without the expense and hassle of owning a car. For some, jettisoning the costs and responsibilities of owning a car is quite liberating.
When you are 16, a car is basically a freedom machine. It produces absolute and utter freedom and is so glorious that you begin to seriously question how you even survived with a maximum possible daily radius travel distance of less than 2 miles.
However, much in the same way that things like The Tonight Show or not going to school turn out to be pretty disappointing, it turns out that owning a car is a not as you dreamt it would be when you get older. Between insurance costs, gas prices and depreciation costs, car ownership is a necessary evil as far as budgets go.
Instead of spending a pile of money on a way to get around, many people have decided to move into cities where all the places that they need to get to are closer and therefore accessible via other means, such as public transportation or various types of leg powered transit.
Take our poll and let us know how you get around.
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6 Responses to “Life Without a Car: Finding a Cheap Rental Car"
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October 24th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Its true, when living in a city, owning a car can be a big inconvenience. A great alternative is Zipcar. This quasi car rental service is great for occasional driving since you can pick them up at a nearby location. Plus, you can pay hourly or buy yearly subscription packages that include gas and insurance. You can even reserve your driving time online. Check out their website at http://www.zipcar.com.
October 29th, 2008 at 8:51 am
This might be a good place to mention car sharing alternatives (http://www.zipcar.com/, http://www.citycarshare.org/). While not always the cheapest, they offer great convenience (cars parked locally, pickups/hatchbacks available, partial day rental — including return on a Sunday night!)
October 29th, 2008 at 9:30 am
I use bus and MUNI daily, but at the same time I wouldnât imagine myself without a car on weekends. Staying active in California means going in and out of the City constantly: Golden Gate Park, Ski slopes in Tahoe, Beach areas around the Bay, Yoga on Mission, Wine country, Sharks in San Jose, BBQ in Berkeley.. etc⦠$300/month lease + $150 insurance is still much cheaper than renting and using cabs all the time.
October 30th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Your poll is not so useful as there is no mixed option. Most city dweller with “real" mass transit use a mix of ways to get around.
October 30th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
thats a good point, Bill. for brevity's sake, however, we chose mutually exclusive categories. for further input, leave us a note in teh comments.
next time, we'll include a cateogry for:
riding a bike to the parking lot, driving a car to the train station, running from the train station to the helicopter pad and rappelling from the top of the building into a cube.
November 3rd, 2008 at 2:39 am
Good post.You shared good information its better to hire a car than owing a car.